Hanger for decorative skirt

ABSTRACT

A skirt hanger and method for applying, removing and storing a skirt from a table or stage in which the hanger provides a means for transporting, storing, applying and removing the skirt from a table or stage without getting the skirt dirty or causing undue wrinkles in the skirt during such operations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates general to a hanger for a decorative skirt which is draped to a banquet table, stage or other item requiring a skirt that is used during weddings, festive occasions and seminars at hotels, restaurants and other types of banquet facilities and, more particularly, to improvements to the hanger used to hang, store and apply the skirt to the banquet table, stage or other item.

In the prior art, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,183 to Figueroa and U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,032 to Ehrlich, a combination table cover and skirt retainer and a table skirt-attaching hanger are shown. Both inventions deal with how the hook fastener is attached to the table in a secure manner to then receive the table skirt with its attached loop fastener so that the table skirt extends around the periphery of the table top. Neither of these two invention deals with how to efficiently apply, remove and then store a table skirt without causing dirt, damage or wrinkles to the table skirt.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A hanger for applying, removing and storing a skirt for use with banquet tables, stages, audio visual carts or other items requiring a decorative skirt in accordance with the invention includes a hanger of a generally flat rectangular shape of a predetermined length, height and thickness for the proper size and strength to handle a variety of different length skirts depending on the size of the banquet table, stage or audio/video cart to be draped by the decorative skirt. The skirt hanger includes at least two or more vertical hook fastener strips of a predetermined length on each side of the hanger to engage the loop fastener strip generally located near or at the top longitudinal edge of any skirt in order to wrap the skirt around the hanger to engage the hook fasteners on the hanger for storage. The hanger further includes a hanger hook which is generally movably and rotatably retained within a top portion of the hanger.

A method for applying, removing and storing a decorative skirt on a hanger includes the steps of attaching a loop fastener on a skirt to two or more vertical strip hook fasteners affixed to each side of a generally flat rectangular hanger, holding a hanger hook rotatably affixed to a top portion of the hanger, unwrapping the skirt from the hanger as the hanger rotates with respect to the hanger hook, applying the loop fastener from an unwrapped portion of the skirt to a hook fastener around the periphery of a banquet table, for example, walking around the periphery of the banquet table and apply the loop fastener of the table skirt to the hook fastener on the periphery of the table while further unwrapping the table skirt from the rotating hanger as one walks around the table applying the table skirt loop to the hook fastener of the table, and then after the banquet or event, removing the table skirt, holding the hanger hook on the hanger, pulling the table skirt away from the table by detaching the loop fastener of the table skirt from the hook fastener on the table, walking around the periphery of the table with the rotating hanger, attaching the pulled away portion of the loop table skirt fastener starting at the bottom portion of the vertical hook strips on the hanger around the rotating hanger in an upwardly spiraling direction toward the top of the hanger until the entire table skirt is suspended on the hanger, storing the table skirt wrapped around the hanger in a convenient storage space on a hanging rod or the like to protect the table skirt from dirt, damage or wrinkles.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a lightweight, portable but extremely durable and strong, decorative skirt hanger that can easily be transported with decorative skirt suspended therefrom either to or from a banquet table, stage or other item to be draped for application of the skirt to the periphery of the item while draping or removing the skirt without causing damage, dirt or wrinkles to the decorative skirt.

It is another object of the invention to provide a hanger for a decorative skirt that prevents the decorative skirt from falling off the hanger during transportation of the skirt to location for its use.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hanger for a table skirt that accommodates table skirts of varying lengths for application to different size tables, stages or even other items requiring a decorative skirt.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a skirt hanger for a banquet tables, stages or other items to be draped by a decorative skirt that includes a swivel top hook for easy application of the skirt to the draped item without the skirt ever touching the ground.

It is a another object of the invention to provide a skirt hanger that permits storage of the decorative skirts with a reduced wrinkling when hung during storage in a closet or the like.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a skirt hanger for the cleaning industry for decorative skirts that can resist the high pressure and temperatures when the skirt hanger and the skirt hanging therefrom are going through a steam cleaning machine during a cleaning process.

Still it is a further object of the invention to provide identification means that will go around the swivel hook to identify the size of each skirt hanger and its capability to handle a certain length of decorative skirt or to identify the length of the decorative skirt on the skirt hanger.

Other features and advantages of the invention, which are believed to be novel and nonobvious, will be apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which there is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention. Reference is made to the claims for interpreting the full scope of the invention, which is not necessarily represented by any one embodiment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an overall perspective view of a hanger for a table or stage skirt incorporating the basic components in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the method of applying or removing a table skirt with a configuration of a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an top perspective view taken along cross section lines 3-3 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a multiple skirt hangers shown in a storage configuration of a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Although this invention is susceptible to embodiments of many different forms, a preferred embodiment will be described and illustrated in detail herein. The present disclosure exemplifies the principles of the invention and is not to be considered a limit to the broader aspects of the invention to the particular embodiment as described.

Referring now to the drawings and especially to FIG. 1 shows a hanger 10 for a table, stage, audio visual cart or other item for hanging a decorative skirt 12 as shown in FIGS. 2-4 therein. The hanger 10 is generally flat and rectangular in shape. The four corners of the rectangular hanger 10 may also be rounded off to prevent any sharp edges. The hanger 10 further includes one or more vertical strip hook fasteners 14 on each side of the hanger 10.

The hanger 10 is generally made from a durable, strong but yet light-weight molded plastic material or any other similar material having a predetermined length, height and thickness depending on the size and weight of the skirt 12. For instance, the hanger 10 might also be made from aluminum which is light-weight but very heat resistant in the event that the hanger with the skirt was going to be used by commercial cleaners who might subject the skirts to high steam pressure and temperatures up to 400 degrees or more during the cleaning process as they pass through the cleaners steam machines.

To reduce the weight but still leave structural integrity, the hanger 10 may have one or more cutouts 16 of a predetermined size and shape. In FIG. 1, three cutouts 16 are shown with the center cutout 16 providing a functional purpose also. A swivel hook 18 passes through an opening 20 in a generally reinforced top center portion 22 of the hanger 10 that ends at the cutout 16 opening. A nib 24 at the bottom of the hook in cutout 16 or a wire, clamp or C-ring attached to or through a bottom portion of the hook 18 within the cutout opening 16 prevents the hook 18 from pulling out through the opening 20 in the center portion 22 when in its swivel or rotatably affixed hook 18 is held by hand or hung from a clothing rod or support hook in a closet. The cutout 16 serves another purpose as it permits a predetermined length of the hook 18 to be pushed downwardly and recessed into the cutout space 16 until the curve end 26 of the hook 18 engages the top of the opening 20 when transporting or storing a number of hangers 10 without the skirt being attached thereto. For example, when a customer or end user is buying or transporting a number of the hangers 10 in a package or the like, it is convenient to have the hooks 18 recessed partially into the center cutout opening 16 to reduce the overall height of the hanger 10.

In addition, the hanger 10 and the skirt 12 attached thereto are often hung on poles attached to mobile carts for transporting a large quantity of decorative skirts to a ballroom for draping a large number of tables, stage and other items in the ballroom requiring decorative skirts. In this event, prior art wire hangers using skirt clips to hold the decorative skirts are often jostled during transportation on the mobile carts and the skirts fall off the skirt hanger damaging or causing skirt to get dirty prior to being draped on a banquet table or the like. So this invention solves that problem of transporting a large number of skirts on mobile carts used by hotels and banquet halls to and from skirt storage locations without the skirts becoming dirty or damage during the transportation thereof.

Moreover, if the hanger 10 is made from aluminum, the top reinforced center portion 22 may have many different configurations including just the overall thickness of the hanger being such that the passageway 20 is easily accommodated in the structure of the hanger 10. Also, the fixed attachment of the hook 18 to the body of the hanger 10 might also taken many different configurations that are well known in the art for capturing a hook in a swivel relationship to the body of the hanger 10.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the method of either applying or removing the skirt 12 from the hanger 10 to a banquet table is generally shown. The hanger 10 is held by the hook 18 while removing the table skirt 12 as shown in FIG. 2. Holding the hook 18 of the hanger 10 serves several purposes. By removing the table skirt 12 by holding the hook 18 so that the bottom of the hanger 10 with its vertical hook strips 14 is even and adjacent the top edge of the table with its hook fastening strip 28 affixed securely to a loop fastening strip 30 attached to the top edge of the table skirt 12. The worker grabs an end of the table skirt 12 attached to a banquet table 32 and begins to pull the table skirt 12 away from the table 32 and then places the loop fastening strip 30 of the skirt 12 onto a bottom vertical hook strip 14 on the hanger 10. While holding the hanger hook 18 in one hand, the worker begins to rotate the hanger 10 about its swivel hook 18 and begins to layer the skirt onto the hooks 14 in an upwardly spiral motion which keeps the table skirt 12 suspended above the ground to keep it clean from dirt or damage while performing this removal procedure. To complete the task, the worker just walks around the periphery of the table applying the table skirt 12 to the vertical hanger hooks 14 as the hanger 10 is rotated about its swivel hook 18. The arrows 34 show the direction of the hanger 10 rotation upon removal of the table skirt 12.

The application of applying the table skirt 12 to the table 32 is just a reversal of the previously above mentioned removal procedure.

FIG. 3 shows a top perspective view taken along cross sectional lines 3-3 of FIG. 2. This view shows the ease of rotating the hanger 10 about its swivel hook 18 to remove the table skirt from its hook and loop fastening to the table. Velcro® hook and loop fasteners are a brand of hook and loop fasteners that might be used on the hanger 10 and table skirt 12 method and apparatus previously described in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 4 show a multiple of hangers 10 with decorative skirts 12 attached thereto for hanging on a closet pole for storage or for hanging on a mobile cart pole for transportation. Typically, the hangers 10 are hung on a closet hanger rod or mobile cart pole 36 or some other rod or hanger hook in a storage facility or mobile cart. The hangers 10 with the skirts 12 attached thereto might also be passed through steam cleaning machines at commercial dry cleaner facilities on a rod or similar bar while being steam cleaned. In this event, the hangers 10 would be made of a material like aluminum or some other material that could resistant the high pressure and steam temperature of commercial cleaning process.

FIG. 4 showing the multiple number of hangers 10 with the skirt attached thereto in a secure manner, demonstrates how the skirts 12 are essentially unable to fall off the hangers 10 when being transported because each loop strip fastener on the skirt is continuously touch fastened to the hook fastener strips numerous times as it is wrapped around the hanger in a spirally upwardly motion during the hanging process of the skirt 12 onto the hanger 10. After just a couple of turns around the hanger 10, the overlapping of the skirt material as it is wrapped around the skirt hanger 10 plus the multiple touch fastening points between the hooks 14 and loops 30 provides a strong and essentially rip free attachment of the skirt 12 to the hanger 10 that again is virtually pull free and jostle free from the skirt 12 falling off the hanger 10 during transportation or storage of the skirt 12.

In addition, the hanger 10 could include a color or other marking identification clip or tag around the hanger hook 18 or even the hanger itself could be colored coded or marked to indicate the different size of the skirt 12 on the hanger 10. The size of the hanger 10 to handle varying lengths of skirts might also be identified by such means as described above.

FIG. 4, with the skirt fully suspended from the hanger 10 shows how this would reduce wrinkling during storage as the skirt hangs down in a neat and compact configuration from its skirt hanger 10 with the hanger hook 18 engaging the storage or mobile cart rod 36. Moreover, the table skirts 12 are tightly wrapped around the hanger 10 with the hook and loop touch fastening strips which prevents them from falling off the hanger 10 during transportation to the banquet hall for setup on the banquet table 32 or a stage, audio visual cart or the like (not shown). The swivel hanger hook 18 that is clearly shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 further provides a means for applying and removing the decorative skirt from the draped item while the worker holds the hook 18 in one hand so the skirt on the hanger 10 is sufficiently above the ground so that a the clean decorative skirt is prevented from dragging on the ground during applying and removing the skirt 12, for example, from a banquet table. Thus the hanger 10 of the invention lends itself to having a cleaner skirt 12 that never touches the ground during removal or application of the skirt 12 to a table 32 or another item to be draped.

Having described and illustrated the principles of the invention in a preferred embodiment thereof, it should be apparent that the invention can be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed. 

1. A device for handling a decorative skirt having a loop fastener strip, comprising: a generally flat rectangular and durable hanger body having two sides and a predetermined height, length and thickness for hanging a decorative skirt therefrom; a hook fastener fixedly attached and extending vertical a predetermined height of the hanger body on both sides of the hanger body; and a hook fixedly attached to a predetermined location on a top center portion of the hanger body; wherein the hook fastener on the hanger body and loop strip fastener on the skirt are touched together multiple times when wrapping the skirt around the hanger body to secure the skirt on the hanger body when removing the skirt from a draped item or when removing the skirt from the hanger body where the hook and loop fasteners at the points touched together are pulled apart to remove the skirt from the hanger body when attaching the skirt to the item for draping.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the hanger body is made from a generally molded plastic or other similar material to make it resistant to moisture, warping or other damage during adverse storage conditions.
 3. The device of claim 1, wherein the hanger body is made of aluminum or other similar material to resist high pressure and temperature during steam cleaning of the skirt upon the hanger body.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein the hanger body along one side edge of its longitudinal axis includes a hollow passageway centrally located between the two opposing ends on the longitudinal axis thereof for receiving the hook in a swivel relationship to the hanger body such that the hanger body can be rotated about the hook when an end user holds the hook in the hand to facilitate the wrapping of the skirt around both sides of the body and allowing contact between the hook fasteners on the body with opening and wherein the swivel hook extends into the centrally located opening at its bottom end and the swivel hook further includes a capturing member attached at its bottom end to prevent the hook from being pulled out of the hollow passageway but allows the hook to be pushed downwardly to be recessed in the opening for transportation or storage of the hanger body.
 6. The device of claim 4, wherein the hanger body includes three openings, one on either side of the centrally located opening and wherein the hanger body includes four vertical hook fastening strips on each side of the hanger body located a predetermined spaced apart distance from each other with two on either side of the central opening on each side so when the hanger body is rotated about the swivel hook axis the skirt loop fastener engages the hook fastening strips in an upwardly spiral fashion as the skirt is wrapped around the hanger body.
 7. A skirt hanger for hanging a table or stage skirt during storage and for applying or removing the table skirt having a loop fastening strip from a table or stage to go either out of or into storage, respectively, comprising: a generally flat rectangular shaped body portion having a predetermined thickness, height and length to accommodate the respective sized skirt, at least one vertical hook fastener of a predetermined length in the direction of its height on both sides of the body portion for touch fastening to the loop fastening strip of the skirt, a swivel hook attached centrally along the longitudinal axis of its length to the top of the body portion wherein the body portion is rotated about the axis of the swivel hook when applying or removing the skirt from the table or stage while holding the swivel hook far enough above the ground so that the skirt when attaching or unwrapping from the body portion does not drag upon the ground causing it to get dirty or wrinkle.
 8. The skirt hanger of claim 6, wherein the swivel hook is made of metal and include a means on its end for fixedly attaching it to the body portion of the skirt hanger wherein the swivel hook is securely attached from a pull out during operation but is able to be recessed for transportation or storage without a skirt.
 9. The skirt hanger of claim 7, wherein the body portion further includes a three openings, two of approximately the same size near opposing ends of the body portion and one of a generally smaller dimension that is centrally located and receives the bottom end of the swivel hook in a locking engagement toward the top portion of the body but permits a recessing of the hook into the opening for storage.
 10. The skirt hanger of claim 6, wherein the body portion is made from a molded plastic or aluminum and further includes an indicia marking to indicate the size of the skirt on the skirt hanger or the size of the skirt that the hanger can handle.
 11. The skirt hanger of claim 6, wherein the body portion on each side includes four vertical hook fastener strips spaced apart a predetermined distance from one another to securely touch fasten the skirt to the hanger body portion when spirally wrapping the skirt from the bottom upwardly to the top of the body portion when rotating the body portion about the axis of the swivel hook during removal of the skirt from a table or stage or unwrapping the skirt in a spirally downward motion when applying the skirt to a table or stage.
 12. The skirt hanger of claim 9, wherein the skirt securely wrapped around the body portion of the skirt hanger prevents the skirt from falling off the skirt hanger or from wrinkling when the skirt hanger is place upon a hanging rod in storage or on a mobile cart for transportation.
 13. A method for removing a skirt with a loop fastener strip from a table or stage and for transporting and storing the skirt in a manner that reduces the collection of dirt and wrinkles to the skirt, comprising: pulling an end of the skirt from the table or stage; holding a swivel hook on a skirt hanger a predetermined distance above the ground so that the lowest end of the removed skirt is above the ground; placing and touch fastening the loop fastener strip of the skirt onto a vertical hook fastener strip at its bottom end on one side of the rotatably skirt hanger; rotating the skirt hanger about the swivel hanger hook to wrap the skirt around the hanger in a spiral upwardly movement while touch fastening the loop fastening strip on the skirt to the hook fasteners on the skirt hanger as the skirt is wrapped around the rotating skirt hanger; walking around the periphery of the table or along the stage while rotating the skirt hanger until all of the loop fastening strip of the skirt is touch fastened to the vertical hook fastener on the skirt hanger; and transporting the skirt hanger with the securely wrapped around and touch fasten hook and loop fastener connection between the skirt hanger and the skirt; and hanging the skirt hanger with the attached skirt on a hanger means.
 14. The method of claim 12, wherein the skirt hanger is made from a generally molded plastic for normal use and made from aluminum for high pressure and temperature commercial steam cleaning.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein the skirt hanger is a generally flat rectangular shape body having multiple opening therethrough for weight reduction and for receiving a bottom end of the swivel hook in a centrally located opening in a fixedly relationship.
 16. The method of claim 12 wherein the hook and loop fasteners are VELCRO brand hook and loop fasteners.
 17. The method of claim 13, wherein the hook and loop fasteners on the hanger and skirt, respectively, securely fastens the skirt to the hanger so that in transporting the skirt hanger, the skirt is incapable of falling off the skirt hanger.
 18. The method of claim 12, wherein the skirt hanger include indicia to mark the size of the skirt that the hanger can accommodate.
 19. The method of claim 12, wherein the applying of the skirt from the skirt hanger to a table or stage further comprise the steps of: taking an end of the skirt on the hanger and pulling the loops of the skirt apart from the hook fasteners on the hanger; placing the pulled off end of the skirt with its loop fastener on a hook fastener strip on a table or stage to touch fasten that end; holding the hanger a predetermined distance above the ground so that the skirt end at its bottom is above the ground; walking around the periphery of the table or along the stage unwrapping the skirt from the hanger in a spiral downwardly motion; lifting the swivel hook higher as the skirt is unwrapped from the hanger to keep it even with the hook fastener strip on the table or stage; and touch fastening the loop fastener strip of the skirt to the table or stage hook fastening strip until the end of the skirt on the hanger.
 20. The method of claim 12, wherein the hanger means is a rod in a closet or on a mobile cart for transporting the hanger with its skirt wrapped therearound and the swivel hook is hung on the rod. 